How The Preserve Cares for Species From Three Continents

The animals at The Preserve come from three different parts of the world, and each one needs a different kind of care. Asian elephants, African giraffes, and Australian kangaroos did not evolve in the Texas Hill Country, so caring for them well means recreating pieces of home for each species. The care team builds daily routines around what each animal needs, from the food on the ground to the climate around it.

Understanding how that care works changes what you notice when you meet these animals in person.

The Preserve's Animal Collection Spans Asia, Africa, and Australia

The animals at The Preserve trace back to three continents. Asia is represented by the Asian elephants, Rosie, Kitty, Becky, and Sophie are the animals at the center of the year-round Elephant Experience. Africa is represented by the giraffes, Sulcata tortoises and African crested porcupines. Australia is represented by the kangaroos, wallabies, and Australian birds that visitors meet on the Animal Expedition.

A collection this varied raises the challenges of animal care. A single set of rules cannot cover a browsing giraffe, a grazing kangaroo, and a four-ton elephant. Each species arrives with its own biology, its own diet, and its own native climate, and good husbandry means treating those differences as the starting point rather than an afterthought.

Species-Appropriate Diets Change From One Continent to the Next

Diet is the clearest place where care differs by species. Each animal eats what its body evolved to process, not a shared feed.

Giraffes are browsers, which means they feed on leaves, shoots, and branches high off the ground rather than grazing on grass. That is why feeding a giraffe by hand is part of the Animal Expedition: the animal reaches up and out for browse the same way it would in the wild. Elephants, by contrast, are bulk feeders that spend much of the day eating large volumes of hay, plants, and produce. Kangaroos and wallabies graze on grasses and low vegetation, a pattern much closer to a grazing deer than to either of the larger animals.

Getting these diets right protects long-term health. The wrong food in the wrong amount leads to digestive problems, dental problems, and weight problems over time, so matching each species to its natural diet is the foundation that every other part of care sits on.

Habitat and Climate Care Adapts Native Environments to the Texas Hill Country

Habitat care means giving each species the space and conditions similar to what they would have in the wild, adjusted for a Central Texas setting. The Texas Hill Country is warm and dry for much of the year, which suits some species more easily than others.

Space and terrain matter as much as temperature. Elephants need room to move, sand for throwing on their backs, and access to water for bathing, which is why bathing is a daily activity built into their care. Australian species need areas to graze and shelter to retreat into. Giraffes need height and open ground. Shade, clean water, and shelter from weather are shared needs across every enclosure, and they carry extra weight during the hottest and coldest stretches of the year.

A Dedicated Veterinary Team Oversees Health Across Every Species

Medical care at The Preserve is handled by a team of veterinarians rather than a single generalist. Different species need different specialists, and the care team is built to reflect that. You can read about the people involved on the page introducing the veterinary team at The Preserve.

Preventive care carries most of the load. Routine health checks, foot care, dental monitoring, and skin care catch small problems before they become serious ones, which matters most for long-lived animals like elephants and tortoises that stay in care for decades. Elephant foot care is a clear example: healthy feet are one of the most important parts of long-term elephant welfare, so foot care is a regular, hands-on routine rather than an occasional treatment.

Behavioral Enrichment Keeps Animals Active and Engaged

Enrichment is the practice of giving animals things to do that mirror or replace the mental and physical challenges they would meet in the wild. Physical health is only half of good care, and a bored animal is not a healthy animal.

Enrichment looks different for each species. For a highly intelligent animal like an elephant, it means problem-solving, variety in the daily routine, and social interaction, which is why how Asian elephants build social bonds shapes the care they get. For grazing and foraging species, it often means hiding food so the animal has to search for it, the same way it would spend its day in the wild. The keeper-led activities that visitors watch, from bathing to hand-feeding, double as enrichment: they give the animals stimulation and choice while giving guests something to see.

ZAA Accreditation Holds The Preserve to Defined Care Standards

The Preserve has been a ZAA accredited facility since 2013. The Zoological Association of America accredits animal facilities against defined standards, so accreditation is external accountability rather than a self-assigned label. You can read more on the page explaining ZAA vs. AZA accreditation.

ZAA accreditation covers six areas that shape daily care across the collection:

• Animal husbandry and daily care protocols

• Veterinary oversight and health documentation

• Enclosure design and space requirements

• Staff training and qualifications

• Conservation and educational programming

• Regulatory compliance with USDA and other federal agencies

Facilities must demonstrate that animals are housed and handled in ways that prioritize their physical and psychological health. Behind those standards is deep hands-on experience: founders Gary and Kari Johnson bring more than 100 combined years of elephant care to The Preserve. The Preserve is a working animal care facility, not a rescue or a sanctuary, so the animals are cared for as a permanent collection under those standards. Consistent, accredited standards are what let one team care well for animals from three continents at the same time.

What Consistent Care Means for Visitors at The Preserve

When you meet the animals at The Preserve, you are seeing the result of care built around each species rather than a one-size-fits-all routine. The giraffe reaching for browse, the elephant lifting a foot for inspection, and the kangaroo grazing nearby are each doing something natural for their species, made possible by care matched to where they came from.

The Animal Expedition introduces the Australian and African species on a 1 hour and 15 minute guided tour, offered on Saturdays from April through November. The Elephant Experience introduces Rosie, Kitty, Becky, and Sophie year round, rain or shine. Both pair that access with exotic animal education, so you learn why each species is cared for the way it is, and both put you close enough to see this care in action.

To book a visit and meet the animals in person, explore the Animal Expedition at The Preserve in Fredericksburg, Texas, or visit visitthepreserve.com.